Context
The Democratic Republic of Congo is currently facing one of the most severe humanitarian crises in its recent history. In early 2025, the escalation of conflict in Eastern DRC — particularly the rapid territorial gains by the M23 armed group — has led to mass displacement, destruction of infrastructure, and the dismantling of key IDP sites in Goma and Bukavu, which are now under M23 control since the first quarter of the year, triggering unprecedented population movements and acute protection risks.
As a result, over 6.9 million people are now internally displaced, with the majority concentrated in Ituri, North Kivu, and South Kivu. Many displaced households are now living in spontaneous sites, or with vulnerable host communities, while tens of thousands have been pushed into premature, unassisted returns to unsafe or destroyed areas of origin.
NRC is a key responder in this crisis and is scaling up its front-line programming in response to the current emergency. Through the SAFER Consortium — comprising ACTED, Concern Worldwide, Mercy Corps, Solidarités International, and NRC — NRC plays a leading role in delivering Multi-Purpose Cash Assistance (MPCA) to newly displaced populations. Through the SAFER Consortium, NRC provides rapid needs assessments, protection risk analysis, and market evaluations to ensure principled and effective humanitarian assistance.
In addition to MPCA, NRC is expanding its rapid response portfolio across multiple sectors including WASH, Shelter, Education in Emergencies (EiE), Information, Counselling and Legal Assistance (ICLA), and Protection. The Emergency Manager will be central to driving this scale-up, working closely with the Head of Programmes and Country Director to ensure NRC delivers timely, principled, and impactful first-phase responses.
What you will do:
The Emergency Response Manager (ERM) is responsible for leading NRC’s emergency preparedness and response in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In the face of one of the country’s most severe crises in recent history, the ERM will play a pivotal role in ensuring NRC’s emergency interventions are timely, principled, technically sound, and delivered at scale.
The ERM will oversee the design, coordination, and execution of first- and second-line emergency responses, including the strategic use of the Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM), and the integration of NRC’s core competencies — Multi-Purpose Cash Assistance (MPCA), WASH, Shelter, Education in Emergencies (EiE), Protection from Violence, and Information, Counselling and Legal Assistance (ICLA).
Reporting to the Head of Programme and working closely with Area Managers, Technical Specialists, and Support departments, the ERM will provide operational leadership and strategic direction to NRC’s emergency response across multiple provinces.
Drive the design, rollout, and revision of NRC’s Emergency Response Strategy, ensuring it aligns with evolving context dynamics and is informed by operational and protection analysis.Provide strategic oversight and coordination of all emergencies and RRM interventions across North and South Kivu, working closely with Area Managers to allocate resources, agree on priorities, and support implementation.Work closely with Access and Security teams to ensure that all responses are undertaken with full risk assessments and safety protocols in place.Represent NRC in the SAFER Consortium Operational Coordination Unit, ensuring effective partnership engagement, technical consistency, and strategic alignment in the delivery of MPCA and multisector responses.Ensure adherence to NRC’s Emergency Response SOPs, including operational risk mitigation, fraud prevention, protection mainstreaming, and SEA mitigation measures.Lead the preparation and submission of donor narrative reports, sitreps, and emergency dashboards in collaboration with Grants and MEAL teams.Provide real-time contextual and operational analysis to senior management and external partners, ensuring that response decisions are data informed.In collaboration with the Head of Programme and MEAL Manager, establish and oversee monitoring, evaluation, and quality assurance mechanisms specific to emergency programming.Supervise the periodic review and local adaptation of sector SOPs and delivery tools, ensuring they reflect emerging best practices and lessons learned.Support the pre-positioning of stocks and assets, in collaboration with Logistics and Programme Development, to ensure readiness for scale-up in new emergency hotspots.Provide technical input into recruitment of emergency staff and lead the development and management of a country-level emergency roster and surge mechanism.Act as focal point for inter-agency emergency coordination, including with OCHA, clusters, and provincial coordination mechanisms.What we are looking for:
Post-graduate with minimum seven years of experience within technical expertise area in a humanitarian context (WASH, Shelter, Education, Protection, Food Security), including at least five years of emergency response management at a senior level with humanitarian NGOs. Proven technical and strategic knowledge on cash programming in emergency setting (including on MPCA, MEB, market assessments, distributions with FSPs …). Experience from working in complex and volatile contexts. Humanitarian coordination experience. Strong managerial and interpersonal skills. Documented results related to the position’s responsibilities. Knowledge about leadership skills. Fluency in French, both written and verbal, required. Fluency in English is considered a strong asset.Context/specific skills, knowledge and experience:
Prior experience in the DRC a major advantage. Swahili language skills an advantage. Knowledge of protection in emergency settings an advantage.Please find the full job description here.
Female candidates are strongly encouraged to join our work culture that empowers every employee to share ideas and take responsibility. At NRC we think outside the box. We encourage ideas and give responsibility to all employees at all levels, to help solve the complex issues that we face. You will have many opportunities to be heard and take the initiative.
Internal candidates are also highly encouraged to apply.
DEADLINE TO APPLY: 11/5/2025
What we offer:
Contract of 12 monthsGrade 9 in NRC scaleLocation: GomaAn opportunity to match your career to a compelling causeA chance to meet and work with people who are the best in their fieldsFind out more about the benefits of working for NRC
Important information about the application process
Internal candidates only: please click on the suitcase icon labelled “I am an employee” to be redirected to NRC’s internal careers site.When creating your profile, include your full name as given on your passport. Complete all the system-required fields for experience, employment history and education.Submit your application and CV in English or in French for French speaking countries, taking care to attach your latest CV.Applications that do not meet the minimum standards in terms of experience or qualifications will generally not be considered. Unsolicited applications not related to this specific job advertisement will not be considered.Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. We receive many applicants for each vacant position.If you have any questions about this role, please email cwa.recruitment@nrc.no with the job title as the subject line.Why NRC?
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) is an independent humanitarian organisation helping people forced to flee. Our 15,000 staff work in crises across 40 countries, providing life-saving and long-term assistance to millions of people every year.
Watch this short video to see NRC in action.
We are looking for people who are passionate about helping refugees and people forced to flee. Are you one of those people? If you are, NRC offers you the opportunity to:
do demanding and professional work, often in challenging contextsjoin a work culture that empowers every employee to share ideas and take responsibilitybe part of a welcoming and supportive community committed to human dignityLearn more about NRC The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) is a global humanitarian organisation helping people forced to flee. Join us in assisting millions of people in areas where others cannot, tackling some of the world's most dangerous and difficult crises. Bring your skills and dedication to an organisation recognised for providing high quality aid and for defending the rights of refugees and internally displaced people. At NRC, we give responsibility to employees at all levels and foster professional growth and innovative teams. You can expect a supportive culture and an open dialogue with management. We are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion. Together, we save lives and rebuild futures. Safeguarding is central to NRC’s work. We expect all employees to: • treat everyone with respect and dignity • contribute to building a safe environment for all • never engage in any form of exploitation, harassment and specifically sexual exploitation, abuse and sexual harassment (SEAH) • always report. NRC has a zero-tolerance approach to inaction against exploitation, abuse and SEAH